Tooling Assembly and Method for Aligning Components for a Powder Bed Additive Manufacturing Repair Process

ABSTRACT

A tooling assembly and method of aligning a plurality of components for a repair process in an additive manufacturing machine includes positioning the plurality of components such that a repair surface of each of the plurality of components contacts an alignment plate, e.g., under the force of gravity or using biasing members. The method further includes surrounding the alignment plate with containment walls to define a reservoir around the plurality of components and dispensing a fill material, such as wax or a potting material, into the reservoir which is configured for fixing a relative position of the plurality of components when the fill material is solidified.

FIELD

The present subject matter relates generally to additive manufacturingmachines and processes, and more particularly to tooling assemblies foraligning multiple components for a powder bed additive manufacturingrepair process.

BACKGROUND

Machine or device components frequently experience damage, wear, and/ordegradation throughout their service life. For example, servicedcompressor blades of a gas turbine engine show erosion, defects, and/orcracks after long term use. Specifically, for example, such blades aresubject to significant stresses which inevitably cause blades to wearover time, particularly near the tip of the blade. For example, bladetips are susceptible to wear or damage from friction or rubbing betweenthe blade tips and shrouds, from chemical degradation or oxidation fromhot gasses, from fatigue caused by cyclic loading and unloading, fromdiffusion creep of crystalline lattices, etc.

Notably, worn or damaged blades may result in machine failure orperformance degradation if not corrected. Specifically, such blades maycause a turbomachine to exhibit reduced operating efficiency as gapsbetween blade tips and turbine shrouds may allow gasses to leak throughthe turbine stages without being converted to mechanical energy. Whenefficiency drops below specified levels, the turbomachine is typicallyremoved from service for overhaul and refurbishment. Moreover, weakenedblades may result in complete fractures and catastrophic failure of theengine.

As a result, compressor blades for a gas turbine engine are typicallythe target of frequent inspections, repairs, or replacements. It isfrequently very expensive to replace such blades altogether, however,some can be repaired for extended lifetime at relatively low cost (ascompared to replacement with entirely new blades). Nevertheless,existing repair processes tend to be labor intensive and time consuming.

For example, a traditional compressor blade tip repair process uses awelding/cladding technique where repair materials are supplied, ineither powder or wire form, to the blade tips. The repair materials aremelted by focused power source (e.g., laser, e-beam, plasma arc, etc.)and bonded to blade tips. However, blades repaired with suchwelding/cladding technique need tedious post-processing to achieve thetarget geometry and surface finish. Specifically, due to the bulkyfeature size of the welding/cladding repair joint, the repaired bladesrequire heavy machining to remove the extra materials on the tip, andfurther require a secondary polishing process to achieve a targetsurface finish. Notably, such a process is performed on a single bladeat a time, is very labor intensive and tedious, and results in verylarge overall labor costs for a single repair.

Alternatively, other direct-energy-deposition (DED) methods may be usedfor blade repair, e.g., such as cold spray, which directs high-speedmetal powders to bombard the target or base component such that thepowders deform and deposit on the base component. However, none of theseDED methods are suitable for batch processing or for repairing a largenumber of components in a time efficient manner, thus providing littleor no business value.

Accordingly, novel systems and methods have been developed and arepresented herein for repairing or rebuilding worn compressor blades (orany other components) using a powder bed additive manufacturing process.Specifically, such a repair process generally includes removing the wornportion of each of a plurality of compressor blades, positioning theplurality of compressor blades on a build platform of an additivemanufacturing machine, determining the precise location of each bladetip, and printing repair segments directly onto the blade tips, layer bylayer, until the compressor blades reach their original dimensions oranother suitable target size and shape.

One of the key challenges with such a novel additive manufacturing DMLMrepair procedures described herein relates to aligning the blade tips atthe same vertical height to facilitate the powder depositing andrecoating processes. Specifically, the recoating process generally usesa recoater blade that scrapes or spreads additive powder into a layer onthe powder bed prior to fusing a portion of that layer. However, if ablade tip is too far above a desired height, physical contact with therecoater may occur, causing a failure of the recoating process. Bycontrast, if a blade tip is too far below the desired height, properfusing of the layer of deposited additive powder to the blade may notoccur, e.g., because the melt pool is not deep enough to form a properbond with the blade tip.

Another challenge in such novel additive manufacturing repair proceduresrelates to the loading, unloading, and handling additive powder which isused to fill the powder bed. In this regard, to perform a repair processon the tip of a blade, the powder bed must first be loaded with additivepowder to the height of the blade tips. Such a process generallyincludes manually loading the additive powder, which is time-consumingand can also be costly, especially for components with large dimensionsin the build orientation, e.g., the height of the blades. Moreover, anyunpacked additive powder might collapse during printing, resulting infailure of recoating. In addition, filling the entire volume of thepowder bed which is not filled by components to be repaired can requirea large volume of powder which must be added prior to printing, removedafter printing, and filtered or screened prior to reuse during asubsequent additive manufacturing process.

Accordingly, an improved system and method for repairing componentsusing an additive manufacturing machine would be useful. Moreparticularly, an additive manufacturing machine including toolingassemblies for aligning multiple components and for minimizing powderusage during a powder bed additive manufacturing process would beparticularly beneficial.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION

Aspects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in part in thefollowing description, or may be obvious from the description, or may belearned through practice of the invention.

In one exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, a method ofaligning a plurality of components for a repair process is provided. Themethod includes positioning the plurality of components such that arepair surface of each of the plurality of components contacts analignment plate, surrounding the alignment plate with containment wallsto define a reservoir, the plurality of components being positioned atleast partially within the reservoir, and dispensing a fill materialinto the reservoir, the fill material being configured for fixing arelative position of the plurality of components when the fill materialis solidified.

In another exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, a toolingassembly for fixing a relative position of a plurality of components isprovided. The tooling assembly includes an alignment plate for receivingthe plurality of components such that a repair surface of each of theplurality of components contacts the alignment plate, a plurality ofwalls surrounding the alignment plate to define a reservoir, and a fillassembly for dispensing a fill material into the reservoir, the fillmaterial fixing a relative position of the plurality of components whensolidified.

These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the presentinvention will become better understood with reference to the followingdescription and appended claims. The accompanying drawings, which areincorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrateembodiments of the invention and, together with the description, serveto explain the principles of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A full and enabling disclosure of the present invention, including thebest mode thereof, directed to one of ordinary skill in the art, is setforth in the specification, which makes reference to the appendedfigures.

FIG. 1 shows a schematic representation of an additive repair systemthat may be used for repairing or rebuilding components according to anexemplary embodiment of the present subject matter.

FIG. 2 depicts certain components of a controller according to exampleembodiments of the present subject matter.

FIG. 3 shows a schematic view of an additive manufacturing machine thatmay be used as part of the exemplary additive repair system of FIG. 1according to an exemplary embodiment of the present subject matter.

FIG. 4 shows a close-up schematic view of a build platform of theexemplary additive manufacturing machine of FIG. 3 according to anexemplary embodiment of the present subject matter.

FIG. 5 is a schematic cross sectional view of a tooling assembly thatmay be used to align the repair surfaces of a plurality of componentsaccording to an exemplary embodiment of the present subject matter.

FIG. 6 is a schematic cross sectional view of the exemplary toolingassembly of FIG. 5 filled with a fill material to fix the relativeposition of the plurality of components according to an exemplaryembodiment of the present subject matter.

FIG. 7 is a schematic cross sectional view of the exemplary toolingassembly of FIG. 5 with a layer of additive powder being depositedaccording to an exemplary embodiment of the present subject matter.

FIG. 8 is a schematic cross sectional view of a tooling assembly thatmay be used to align the repair surfaces of a plurality of componentsaccording to another exemplary embodiment of the present subject matter.

FIG. 9 is a method of aligning a plurality of components in a powder bedadditive manufacturing machine according to an exemplary embodiment ofthe present subject matter.

Repeat use of reference characters in the present specification anddrawings is intended to represent the same or analogous features orelements of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Reference now will be made in detail to embodiments of the invention,one or more examples of which are illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings. Each example is provided by way of explanation of theinvention, not limitation of the invention. In fact, it will be apparentto those skilled in the art that various configurations, modifications,and variations can be made in the present invention without departingfrom the scope or spirit of the invention. For instance, featuresillustrated or described as part of one embodiment can be used withanother embodiment to yield a still further embodiment. Thus, it isintended that the present invention covers such modifications andvariations as come within the scope of the appended claims and theirequivalents.

As used herein, the terms “first,” “second,” and “third” may be usedinterchangeably to distinguish one component from another and are notintended to signify location or importance of the individual components.In addition, the terms “upstream” and “downstream” refer to the relativedirection with respect to the motion of an object or a flow of fluid.For example, “upstream” refers to the direction from which the objecthas moved or fluid has flowed, and “downstream” refers to the directionto which the object is moving or the fluid is flowing. Furthermore, asused herein, terms of approximation, such as “approximately,”“substantially,” or “about,” refer to being within a ten percent marginof error.

Aspects of the present subject matter are directed to a system andmethod for repairing one or more components using an additivemanufacturing process. The method includes securing the components in atooling assembly such that a repair surface of each component ispositioned within a single build plane, determining a repair toolpathcorresponding to the repair surface of each component using a visionsystem, depositing a layer of additive powder over the repair surface ofeach component using a powder dispensing assembly, and selectivelyirradiating the layer of additive powder along the repair toolpath tofuse the layer of additive powder onto the repair surface of eachcomponent.

Specifically, aspects of the present subject matter provide a toolingassembly and method of aligning a plurality of components for a repairprocess in an additive manufacturing machine. The method includespositioning the plurality of components such that a repair surface ofeach of the plurality of components contacts an alignment plate, e.g.,under the force of gravity or using biasing members. The method furtherincludes surrounding the alignment plate with containment walls todefine a reservoir around the plurality of components and dispensing afill material, such as wax or a potting material, into the reservoirwhich is configured for fixing a relative position of the plurality ofcomponents when the fill material is solidified. In this manner, a tipsof the plurality of components may be aligned for the repair procedureand the amount of additive powder required to fill the powder bed may bereduced.

As described in detail below, exemplary embodiments of the presentsubject matter involve the use of additive manufacturing machines ormethods. As used herein, the terms “additively manufactured” or“additive manufacturing techniques or processes” refer generally tomanufacturing processes wherein successive layers of material(s) areprovided on each other to “build-up,” layer-by-layer, athree-dimensional component. The successive layers generally fusetogether to form a monolithic component which may have a variety ofintegral sub-components.

Although additive manufacturing technology is described herein asenabling fabrication of complex objects by building objectspoint-by-point, layer-by-layer, typically in a vertical direction, othermethods of fabrication are possible and within the scope of the presentsubject matter. For example, although the discussion herein refers tothe addition of material to form successive layers, one skilled in theart will appreciate that the methods and structures disclosed herein maybe practiced with any additive manufacturing technique or manufacturingtechnology. For example, embodiments of the present invention may uselayer-additive processes, layer-subtractive processes, or hybridprocesses.

Suitable additive manufacturing techniques in accordance with thepresent disclosure include, for example, Fused Deposition Modeling(FDM), Selective Laser Sintering (SLS), 3D printing such as by inkjetsand laserjets, Sterolithography (SLA), Direct Selective Laser Sintering(DSLS), Electron Beam Sintering (EBS), Electron Beam Melting (EBM),Laser Engineered Net Shaping (LENS), Laser Net Shape Manufacturing(LNSM), Direct Metal Deposition (DMD), Digital Light Processing (DLP),Direct Selective Laser Melting (DSLM), Selective Laser Melting (SLM),Direct Metal Laser Melting (DMLM), and other known processes.

In addition to using a direct metal laser sintering (DMLS) or directmetal laser melting (DMLM) process where an energy source is used toselectively sinter or melt portions of a layer of powder, it should beappreciated that according to alternative embodiments, the additivemanufacturing process may be a “binder jetting” process. In this regard,binder jetting involves successively depositing layers of additivepowder in a similar manner as described above. However, instead of usingan energy source to generate an energy beam to selectively melt or fusethe additive powders, binder jetting involves selectively depositing aliquid binding agent onto each layer of powder. The liquid binding agentmay be, for example, a photo-curable polymer or another liquid bondingagent. Other suitable additive manufacturing methods and variants areintended to be within the scope of the present subject matter.

The additive manufacturing processes described herein may be used forforming components using any suitable material. For example, thematerial may be plastic, metal, concrete, ceramic, polymer, epoxy,photopolymer resin, or any other suitable material that may be in solid,liquid, powder, sheet material, wire, or any other suitable form. Morespecifically, according to exemplary embodiments of the present subjectmatter, the additively manufactured components described herein may beformed in part, in whole, or in some combination of materials includingbut not limited to pure metals, nickel alloys, chrome alloys, titanium,titanium alloys, magnesium, magnesium alloys, aluminum, aluminum alloys,iron, iron alloys, stainless steel, and nickel or cobalt basedsuperalloys (e.g., those available under the name Inconel® availablefrom Special Metals Corporation). These materials are examples ofmaterials suitable for use in the additive manufacturing processesdescribed herein, and may be generally referred to as “additivematerials.”

In addition, one skilled in the art will appreciate that a variety ofmaterials and methods for bonding those materials may be used and arecontemplated as within the scope of the present disclosure. As usedherein, references to “fusing” may refer to any suitable process forcreating a bonded layer of any of the above materials. For example, ifan object is made from polymer, fusing may refer to creating a thermosetbond between polymer materials. If the object is epoxy, the bond may beformed by a crosslinking process. If the material is ceramic, the bondmay be formed by a sintering process. If the material is powdered metal,the bond may be formed by a melting or sintering process. One skilled inthe art will appreciate that other methods of fusing materials to make acomponent by additive manufacturing are possible, and the presentlydisclosed subject matter may be practiced with those methods.

In addition, the additive manufacturing process disclosed herein allowsa single component to be formed from multiple materials. Thus, thecomponents described herein may be formed from any suitable mixtures ofthe above materials. For example, a component may include multiplelayers, segments, or parts that are formed using different materials,processes, and/or on different additive manufacturing machines. In thismanner, components may be constructed which have different materials andmaterial properties for meeting the demands of any particularapplication. In addition, although the components described herein areconstructed entirely by additive manufacturing processes, it should beappreciated that in alternate embodiments, all or a portion of thesecomponents may be formed via casting, machining, and/or any othersuitable manufacturing process. Indeed, any suitable combination ofmaterials and manufacturing methods may be used to form thesecomponents.

An exemplary additive manufacturing process will now be described.Additive manufacturing processes fabricate components usingthree-dimensional (3D) information, for example a three-dimensionalcomputer model, of the component. Accordingly, a three-dimensionaldesign model of the component may be defined prior to manufacturing. Inthis regard, a model or prototype of the component may be scanned todetermine the three-dimensional information of the component. As anotherexample, a model of the component may be constructed using a suitablecomputer aided design (CAD) program to define the three-dimensionaldesign model of the component.

The design model may include 3D numeric coordinates of the entireconfiguration of the component including both external and internalsurfaces of the component. For example, the design model may define thebody, the surface, and/or internal passageways such as openings, supportstructures, etc. In one exemplary embodiment, the three-dimensionaldesign model is converted into a plurality of slices or segments, e.g.,along a central (e.g., vertical) axis of the component or any othersuitable axis. Each slice may define a thin cross section of thecomponent for a predetermined height of the slice. The plurality ofsuccessive cross-sectional slices together form the 3D component. Thecomponent is then “built-up” slice-by-slice, or layer-by-layer, untilfinished.

In this manner, the components described herein may be fabricated usingthe additive process, or more specifically each layer is successivelyformed, e.g., by fusing or polymerizing a plastic using laser energy orheat or by sintering or melting metal powder. For example, a particulartype of additive manufacturing process may use an energy beam, forexample, an electron beam or electromagnetic radiation such as a laserbeam, to sinter or melt a powder material. Any suitable laser and laserparameters may be used, including considerations with respect to power,laser beam spot size, and scanning velocity. The build material may beformed by any suitable powder or material selected for enhancedstrength, durability, and useful life, particularly at hightemperatures.

Each successive layer may be, for example, between about 10 μm and 200μm, although the thickness may be selected based on any number ofparameters and may be any suitable size according to alternativeembodiments. Therefore, utilizing the additive formation methodsdescribed above, the components described herein may have cross sectionsas thin as one thickness of an associated powder layer, e.g., 10 μm,utilized during the additive formation process.

In addition, utilizing an additive process, the surface finish andfeatures of the components may vary as need depending on theapplication. For example, the surface finish may be adjusted (e.g., madesmoother or rougher) by selecting appropriate laser scan parameters(e.g., laser power, scan speed, laser focal spot size, etc.) during theadditive process, especially in the periphery of a cross-sectional layerwhich corresponds to the part surface. For example, a rougher finish maybe achieved by increasing laser scan speed or decreasing the size of themelt pool formed, and a smoother finish may be achieved by decreasinglaser scan speed or increasing the size of the melt pool formed. Thescanning pattern and/or laser power can also be changed to change thesurface finish in a selected area.

After fabrication of the component is complete, various post-processingprocedures may be applied to the component. For example, post processingprocedures may include removal of excess powder by, for example, blowingor vacuuming. Other post processing procedures may include a stressrelief process. Additionally, thermal, mechanical, and/or chemical postprocessing procedures can be used to finish the part to achieve adesired strength, surface finish, and other component properties orfeatures.

Notably, in exemplary embodiments, several aspects and features of thepresent subject matter were previously not possible due to manufacturingrestraints. However, the present inventors have advantageously utilizedcurrent advances in additive manufacturing techniques to improve variouscomponents and the method of additively manufacturing such components.While the present disclosure is not limited to the use of additivemanufacturing to form these components generally, additive manufacturingdoes provide a variety of manufacturing advantages, including ease ofmanufacturing, reduced cost, greater accuracy, etc.

Also, the additive manufacturing methods described above enable muchmore complex and intricate shapes and contours of the componentsdescribed herein to be formed with a very high level of precision. Forexample, such components may include thin additively manufacturedlayers, cross sectional features, and component contours. In addition,the additive manufacturing process enables the manufacture of a singlecomponent having different materials such that different portions of thecomponent may exhibit different performance characteristics. Thesuccessive, additive nature of the manufacturing process enables theconstruction of these novel features. As a result, components formedusing the methods described herein may exhibit improved performance andreliability.

Referring now to FIG. 1, an exemplary additive repair system 50 will bedescribed according to an exemplary embodiment of the present subjectmatter. As illustrated, additive repair system 50 generally includes atooling fixture or assembly 52, a material removal assembly 54, a visionsystem 56, a user interface panel 58, and an additive manufacturingmachine or system 100. Furthermore, a system controller 60 may beoperably coupled with some or all parts of additive repair system 50 forfacilitating system operation. For example, system controller 60 may beoperably coupled to user interface panel 58 to permit operatorcommunication with additive repair system 50, e.g., to input commands,upload printing toolpaths or CAD models, initiating operating cycles,etc. Controller 60 may further be in communication with vision system 56for receiving imaging data and with AM machine 100 for performing aprinting process.

According to exemplary embodiments, tooling assembly 52 is generallyconfigured for supporting a plurality of components in a desiredposition and orientation. According to exemplary embodiments, toolingassembly 52 supports twenty (20) high pressure compressor blades 70during an additive manufacturing repair process. Specifically, theadditive manufacturing process may be a powder bed fusion process (e.g.,a DMLM or DMLS process as described above). Although the repairedcomponents are illustrated herein as compressor blades 70 of a gasturbine engine, it should be appreciated that any other suitablecomponent may be repaired, such as turbine blades, other airfoils, orcomponents from other machines. In order to achieve proper recoating andto facilitate the printing process, it may be desirable to position allblades 70 in the same orientation and at the same height such that arepair surface 72 of each blade is in a single build plane. Toolingassembly 52 is a fixture intended to secure blades 70 in such desiredposition and orientation.

Material removal assembly 54 may include a machine or device configuredfor grinding, machining, brushing, etching, polishing, wire electricaldischarge machining (EDM), cutting, or otherwise substantively modifyinga component, e.g., by subtractive modification or material removal. Forexample, material removal assembly 54 may include a belt grinder, a discgrinder, or any other grinding or abrasive mechanism. According to anexemplary embodiment, material removal assembly 54 may be configured forremoving material from a tip of each blade 70 to obtain a desirablerepair surface 72. For example, as explained briefly above, materialremoval assembly 54 may remove at least a portion of blades 70 that hasbeen worn or damaged, e.g., which may include microcracks, pits,abrasions, defects, foreign material, depositions, imperfections, andthe like. According to an exemplary embodiment, each blade 70 isprepared using material removal assembly 54 to achieve the desiredrepair surface 72, after which the blades 70 are all mounted in toolingassembly 52 and leveled appropriately. However, according to alternativeembodiments, material removal assembly 54 may grind each blade 70 as itis fixed in position in tooling assembly 52.

After the blades are prepared, vision system 56 may be used to obtain animage or digital representation of the precise position and coordinatesof each blade 70 positioned in tooling assembly 52. In this regard,according to exemplary embodiments, vision system 56 may include anysuitable camera or cameras 80, scanners, imaging devices, or othermachine vision device that may be operably configured to obtain imagedata that includes a digital representation of one or more fields ofview. Such a digital representation may sometimes be referred to as adigital image or an image; however, it will be appreciated that thepresent disclosure may be practiced without rendering such a digitalrepresentation in human-visible form. Nevertheless, in some embodiments,a human-visible image corresponding to a field of view may be displayedon the user interface 58 based at least in part on such a digitalrepresentation of one or more fields of view.

Vision system 56 allows the additive repair system 50 to obtaininformation pertaining to one or more blades 70 onto which one or morerepair segments 74 (see FIG. 4) may be respectively additively printed.In particular, the vision system 56 allows the one or more blades 70 tobe located and defined so that the additive manufacturing machine 100may be instructed to print one or more repair segments 74 on acorresponding one or more blades 70 with suitably high accuracy andprecision. According to an exemplary embodiment, the one or more blades70 may be secured to tooling assembly 52, a mounting plate, a buildplatform, or any other fixture with repair surface 72 of the respectiveblades 70 aligned to a single build plane 82.

The one or more cameras 80 of the vision system 56 may be configured toobtain two-dimensional or three-dimensional image data, including atwo-dimensional digital representation of a field of view and/or athree-dimensional digital representation of a field of view. Alignmentof the repair surface 72 of the blades 70 with the build plane 82 allowsthe one or more cameras 80 to obtain higher quality images. For example,the one or more cameras 80 may have a focal length adjusted oradjustable to the build plane 82. With the repair surface 72 of one ormore blades 70 aligned to the build plane 82, the one or more camerasmay readily obtain digital images of the repair surface 72.

The one or more cameras 80 may include a field of view that encompassesall or a portion of the one or more blades 70 secured to the toolingassembly 52. For example, a single field of view may be wide enough toencompass a plurality of components, such as each of the plurality ofblades 70 secured to tooling assembly 52. Alternatively, a field of viewmay more narrowly focus on an individual blade 70 such that digitalrepresentations of respective blades 70 are obtained separately. It willbe appreciated that separately obtained digital images may be stitchedtogether to obtain a digital representation of a plurality of componentsor blades 70. In some embodiments, the camera 80 may include acollimated lens configured to provide a flat focal plane, such thatblades 70 or portions thereof located towards the periphery of the fieldof view are not distorted. Additionally, or in the alternative, thevision system 56 may utilize a distortion correction algorithm toaddress any such distortion.

Image data obtained by the vision system 56, including a digitalrepresentation of one or more blades 70 may be transmitted to a controlsystem, such as controller 60. Controller 60 may be configured todetermine a repair surface 72 of each of a plurality of blades 70 fromone or more digital representations of one or more fields of view havingbeen captured by the vision system 56, and then determine one or morecoordinates of the repair surface 72 of respective ones of the pluralityof blades 70. Based on the one or more digital representations,controller 60 may generate one or more print commands (e.g.,corresponding to one or more repair toolpaths, e.g., the path of a laserfocal point), which may be transmitted to an additive manufacturingmachine 100 such that the additive manufacturing machine 100 mayadditively print a plurality of repair segments 74 on respective ones ofthe plurality of blades 70. The one or more print commands may beconfigured to additively print a plurality of repair segments 74 witheach respective one of the plurality of repair segments 74 being locatedon the repair surface 72 of a corresponding blade 70.

Each of the components and subsystems of additive repair system 50 aredescribed herein in the context of an additive blade repair process.However, it should be appreciated that aspects of the present subjectmatter may be used to repair or rebuild any suitable components. Thepresent subject matter is not intended to be limited to the specificrepair process described. In addition, FIG. 1 illustrates each of thesystems as being distinct or separate from each other and implies theprocess steps should be performed in a particular order, however, itshould be appreciated that these subsystems may be integrated into asingle machine, process steps may be swapped, and other changes to thebuild process may be implemented while remaining within the scope of thepresent subject matter.

For example, vision system 56 and additive manufacturing machine 100 maybe provided as a single, integrated unit or as separate stand-aloneunits. In addition, controller 60 may include one or more controlsystems. For example, a single controller 60 may be operably configuredto control operations of the vision system 56 and the additivemanufacturing machine 100, or separate controllers 60 may be operablyconfigured to respectively control the vision system 56 and the additivemanufacturing machine 100.

Operation of additive repair system 50, vision system 56, and AM machine100 may be controlled by electromechanical switches or by a processingdevice or controller 60 (see, e.g., FIGS. 1 and 2). According toexemplary embodiments, controller 60 may be operatively coupled to userinterface panel 58 for user manipulation, e.g., to control the operationof various components of AM machine 100 or system 50. In this regard,controller 60 may operably couple all systems and subsystems withinadditive repair system 50 to permit communication and data transfertherebetween. In this manner, controller 60 may be generally configuredfor operating additive repair system 50 or performing one or more of themethods described herein.

FIG. 2 depicts certain components of controller 60 according to exampleembodiments of the present disclosure. Controller 60 can include one ormore computing device(s) 60A which may be used to implement methods asdescribed herein. Computing device(s) 60A can include one or moreprocessor(s) 60B and one or more memory device(s) 60C. The one or moreprocessor(s) 60B can include any suitable processing device, such as amicroprocessor, microcontroller, integrated circuit, an applicationspecific integrated circuit (ASIC), a digital signal processor (DSP), afield-programmable gate array (FPGA), logic device, one or more centralprocessing units (CPUs), graphics processing units (GPUs) (e.g.,dedicated to efficiently rendering images), processing units performingother specialized calculations, etc. The memory device(s) 60C caninclude one or more non-transitory computer-readable storage medium(s),such as RAM, ROM, EEPROM, EPROM, flash memory devices, magnetic disks,etc., and/or combinations thereof.

The memory device(s) 60C can include one or more computer-readable mediaand can store information accessible by the one or more processor(s)60B, including instructions 60D that can be executed by the one or moreprocessor(s) 60B. For instance, the memory device(s) 60C can storeinstructions 60D for running one or more software applications,displaying a user interface, receiving user input, processing userinput, etc. In some implementations, the instructions 60D can beexecuted by the one or more processor(s) 60B to cause the one or moreprocessor(s) 60B to perform operations, e.g., such as one or moreportions of methods described herein. The instructions 60D can besoftware written in any suitable programming language or can beimplemented in hardware. Additionally, and/or alternatively, theinstructions 60D can be executed in logically and/or virtually separatethreads on processor(s) 60B.

The one or more memory device(s) 60C can also store data 60E that can beretrieved, manipulated, created, or stored by the one or moreprocessor(s) 60B. The data 60E can include, for instance, data tofacilitate performance of methods described herein. The data 60E can bestored in one or more database(s). The one or more database(s) can beconnected to controller 60 by a high bandwidth LAN or WAN, or can alsobe connected to controller through one or more network(s) (not shown).The one or more database(s) can be split up so that they are located inmultiple locales. In some implementations, the data 60E can be receivedfrom another device.

The computing device(s) 60A can also include a communication module orinterface 60F used to communicate with one or more other component(s) ofcontroller 60 or additive manufacturing machine 100 over the network(s).The communication interface 60F can include any suitable components forinterfacing with one or more network(s), including for example,transmitters, receivers, ports, controllers, antennas, or other suitablecomponents.

Referring now to FIG. 3, an exemplary laser powder bed fusion system,such as a DMLS or DMLM system 100, will be described according to anexemplary embodiment. Specifically, AM system 100 is described herein asbeing used to build or repair blades 70. It should be appreciated thatblades 70 are only an exemplary component to be built or repaired andare used primarily to facilitate description of the operation of AMmachine 100. The present subject matter is not intended to be limited inthis regard, but instead AM machine 100 may be used for printing repairsegments on any suitable plurality of components.

As illustrated, AM system 100 generally defines a vertical direction Vor Z-direction, a lateral direction L or X-direction, and a transversedirection T or Y-direction (see FIG. 1), each of which is mutuallyperpendicular, such that an orthogonal coordinate system is generallydefined. As illustrated, system 100 includes a fixed enclosure or buildarea 102 which provides a contaminant-free and controlled environmentfor performing an additive manufacturing process. In this regard, forexample, enclosure 102 serves to isolate and protect the othercomponents of the system 100. In addition, enclosure 102 may be providedwith a flow of an appropriate shielding gas, such as nitrogen, argon, oranother suitable gas or gas mixture. In this regard, enclosure 102 maydefine a gas inlet port 104 and a gas outlet port 106 for receiving aflow of gas to create a static pressurized volume or a dynamic flow ofgas.

Enclosure 102 may generally contain some or all components of AM system100. According to an exemplary embodiment, AM system 100 generallyincludes a table 110, a powder supply 112, a scraper or recoatermechanism 114, an overflow container or reservoir 116, and a buildplatform 118 positioned within enclosure 102. In addition, an energysource 120 generates an energy beam 122 and a beam steering apparatus124 directs energy beam 122 to facilitate the AM process as described inmore detail below. Each of these components will be described in moredetail below.

According to the illustrated embodiment, table 110 is a rigid structuredefining a planar build surface 130. In addition, planar build surface130 defines a build opening 132 through which build chamber 134 may beaccessed. More specifically, according to the illustrated embodiment,build chamber 134 is defined at least in part by vertical walls 136 andbuild platform 118. Notably, build platform 118 is movable along a builddirection 138 relative to build surface 130. More specifically, builddirection 138 may correspond to the vertical direction V, such thatmoving build platform 118 down increases the height of the part beingprinted and the build chamber 134. In addition, build surface 130defines a supply opening 140 through which additive powder 142 may besupplied from powder supply 112 and a reservoir opening 144 throughwhich excess additive powder 142 may pass into overflow reservoir 116.Collected additive powders may optionally be treated to sieve out loose,agglomerated particles before re-use.

Powder supply 112 generally includes an additive powder supply container150 which generally contains a volume of additive powder 142 sufficientfor some or all of the additive manufacturing process for a specificpart or parts. In addition, powder supply 112 includes a supply platform152, which is a plate-like structure that is movable along the verticaldirection within powder supply container 150. More specifically, asupply actuator 154 vertically supports supply platform 152 andselectively moves it up and down during the additive manufacturingprocess.

AM system 100 further includes recoater mechanism 114, which is a rigid,laterally-elongated structure that lies proximate build surface 130. Forexample, recoater mechanism 114 may be a hard scraper, a soft squeegee,or a roller. Recoater mechanism 114 is operably coupled to a recoateractuator 160 which is operable to selectively move recoater mechanism114 along build surface 130. In addition, a platform actuator 164 isoperably coupled to build platform 118 and is generally operable formoving build platform 118 along the vertical direction during the buildprocess. Although actuators 154, 160, and 164 are illustrated as beinghydraulic actuators, it should be appreciated that any other type andconfiguration of actuators may be used according to alternativeembodiments, such as pneumatic actuators, hydraulic actuators, ballscrew linear electric actuators, or any other suitable vertical supportmeans. Other configurations are possible and within the scope of thepresent subject matter.

As used herein, “energy source” may be used to refer to any device orsystem of devices configured for directing an energy beam of suitablepower and other operating characteristics towards a layer of additivepowder to sinter, melt, or otherwise fuse a portion of that layer ofadditive powder during the build process. For example, energy source 120may be a laser or any other suitable irradiation emission directingdevice or irradiation device. In this regard, an irradiation or lasersource may originate photons or laser beam irradiation which is directedby the irradiation emission directing device or beam steering apparatus.

According to an exemplary embodiment, beam steering apparatus 124includes one or more mirrors, prisms, lenses, and/or electromagnetsoperably coupled with suitable actuators and arranged to direct andfocus energy beam 122. In this regard, for example, beam steeringapparatus 124 may be a galvanometer scanner that moves or scans thefocal point of the laser beam 122 emitted by energy source 120 acrossthe build surface 130 during the laser melting and sintering processes.In this regard, energy beam 122 can be focused to a desired spot sizeand steered to a desired position in plane coincident with build surface130. The galvanometer scanner in powder bed fusion technologies istypically of a fixed position but the movable mirrors/lenses containedtherein allow various properties of the laser beam to be controlled andadjusted. According to exemplary embodiments, beam steering apparatusmay further include one or more of the following: optical lenses,deflectors, mirrors, beam splitters, telecentric lenses, etc.

It should be appreciated that other types of energy sources 120 may beused which may use an alternative beam steering apparatus 124. Forexample, an electron beam gun or other electron source may be used tooriginate a beam of electrons (e.g., an “e-beam”). The e-beam may bedirected by any suitable irradiation emission directing devicepreferably in a vacuum. When the irradiation source is an electronsource, the irradiation emission directing device may be, for example,an electronic control unit which may include, for example, deflectorcoils, focusing coils, or similar elements. According to still otherembodiments, energy source 120 may include one or more of a laser, anelectron beam, a plasma arc, an electric arc, etc.

Prior to an additive manufacturing process, recoater actuator 160 may belowered to provide a supply of powder 142 of a desired composition (forexample, metallic, ceramic, and/or organic powder) into supply container150. In addition, platform actuator 164 may move build platform 118 toan initial high position, e.g., such that it substantially flush orcoplanar with build surface 130. Build platform 118 is then loweredbelow build surface 130 by a selected layer increment. The layerincrement affects the speed of the additive manufacturing process andthe resolution of a components or parts (e.g., blades 70) beingmanufactured. As an example, the layer increment may be about 10 to 100micrometers (0.0004 to 0.004 in.).

Additive powder is then deposited over the build platform 118 beforebeing fused by energy source 120. Specifically, supply actuator 154 mayraise supply platform 152 to push powder through supply opening 140,exposing it above build surface 130. Recoater mechanism 114 may then bemoved across build surface 130 by recoater actuator 160 to spread theraised additive powder 142 horizontally over build platform 118 (e.g.,at the selected layer increment or thickness). Any excess additivepowder 142 drops through the reservoir opening 144 into the overflowreservoir 116 as recoater mechanism 114 passes from left to right (asshown in FIG. 3). Subsequently, recoater mechanism 114 may be moved backto a starting position.

Therefore, as explained herein and illustrated in FIG. 3, recoatermechanism 114, recoater actuator 160, supply platform 152, and supplyactuator 154 may generally operate to successively deposit layers ofadditive powder 142 or other additive material to facilitate the printprocess. As such, these components may collectively be referred toherein as powder dispensing apparatus, system, or assembly. The leveledadditive powder 142 may be referred to as a “build layer” 172 (see FIG.4) and the exposed upper surface thereof may be referred to as buildsurface 130. When build platform 118 is lowered into build chamber 134during a build process, build chamber 134 and build platform 118collectively surround and support a mass of additive powder 142 alongwith any components (e.g., blades 70) being built. This mass of powderis generally referred to as a “powder bed,” and this specific categoryof additive manufacturing process may be referred to as a “powder bedprocess.”

During the additive manufacturing process, the directed energy source120 is used to melt a two-dimensional cross-section or layer of thecomponent (e.g., blades 70) being built. More specifically, energy beam122 is emitted from energy source 120 and beam steering apparatus 124 isused to steer the focal point 174 of energy beam 122 over the exposedpowder surface in an appropriate pattern (referred to herein as a“toolpath”). A small portion of exposed layer of the additive powder 142surrounding focal point 174, referred to herein as a “weld pool” or“melt pool” or “heat effected zone” 176 (best seen in FIG. 4) is heatedby energy beam 122 to a temperature allowing it to sinter or melt, flow,and consolidate. As an example, melt pool 176 may be on the order of 100micrometers (0.004 in.) wide. This step may be referred to as fusingadditive powder 142.

Build platform 118 is moved vertically downward by the layer increment,and another layer of additive powder 142 is applied in a similarthickness. The directed energy source 120 again emits energy beam 122and beam steering apparatus 124 is used to steer the focal point 174 ofenergy beam 122 over the exposed powder surface in an appropriatepattern. The exposed layer of additive powder 142 is heated by energybeam 122 to a temperature allowing it to sinter or melt, flow, andconsolidate both within the top layer and with the lower,previously-solidified layer. This cycle of moving build platform 118,applying additive powder 142, and then directed energy beam 122 to meltadditive powder 142 is repeated until the entire component (e.g., blades70) is complete.

Referring again briefly to FIG. 1, tooling assembly 52 is generallyconfigured for receiving one or more components, e.g., shown here asblades 70, and securely mounting such components for a subsequentadditive manufacturing process. Specifically, tooling assembly 52 maysecure each of the plurality of blades 70 in a desired position andorientation relative to AM machine 100. In this regard, as used herein,the “position” of a blade 70 may refer to the coordinates of a centroidof blade 70 in the X-Y plane. In addition, the “orientation” of a blade70 may refer to an angular position of blade 70 about the Z-direction.In this regard, according to an exemplary embodiment, the orientation ofeach blade 70 may be defined according to the angular position of itschord line (not shown). In this regard, for example, two blades 70 aresaid to have the same “orientation” when their chord lines are parallelto each other.

As explained briefly above, it is desirable to support a plurality ofcomponents, such as blades 70, such that the repair surface 72 of eachblade 70 is positioned within a build plane 82. In this manner, a layerof additive powder (e.g., build layer 172) may be deposited over eachrepair surface 72 at a desired thickness for forming a first layer ofrepair segments 74 (FIG. 4) on the tip of each blade 70. Notably,however, due to the height of each blade 70 relative to a height ofrepair segments 74, conventional additive manufacturing processesrequire a substantial amount of additive powder 142. Specifically, asubstantial volume of additive powder 142 must typically be providedinto build chamber 134 to form a powder bed that supports the top layerof additive powder or build layer 172.

As explained above, the powder loading process is typically a manualprocess that takes a significant amount of time and can result inrecoating or print errors when pockets or voids collapse within theadditive powder 142. In addition, additive manufacturing machine 100, orbuild platform 118 more specifically, is typically configured for onlysupporting a specific volume or weight of additive powder 142 during thebuild process, thus introducing process limitations when powder bed isfilled with additive powder 142. Finally, even to the extent someunfused additive powder 142 may be reused during subsequent additivemanufacturing processes, such used additive powder 142 must be carefullyscreened, filtered, or otherwise reconditioned prior to reuse. Aspectsof the present subject matter are directed both to aligning the repairsurface of components and to minimizing the amount of additive powderrequired for an additive repair process as described herein.

Referring now generally to FIGS. 5 through 8, a tooling assembly 200that may be used with AM system 100 will be described according to anexemplary embodiment of the present subject matter. For example, toolingassembly 200 may be a part of or used in conjunction with toolingassembly 52 as described in relation to FIG. 1. Because tooling assembly200 can be used as part of additive repair system 50 or in AM system100, like reference numerals may be used in FIGS. 5 through 8 to referto like features described with respect to FIGS. 1 through 4.

As illustrated, tooling assembly 200 includes an alignment plate 202which is configured for receiving a plurality of components, e.g.,blades 70 such that a repair surface 72 of each of the plurality ofblades 70 contacts the alignment plate 202. In this regard, alignmentplate 202 is typically a flat, rigid plate that serves to align repairsurfaces 72 of all blades 70 in a single build plane 82. In this manner,each blade 70, regardless of its height, may have a repair surface 72positioned in the build plane 82 (e.g., when urged against the alignmentplate 202).

Notably, in order to facilitate a powder bed repair process, alignmentplate 202 must be removed from repair surfaces 72 of blades 70 whileblades 70 remain fixed relative to each other. Therefore, according toan exemplary embodiment, tooling assembly 200 further includes a fillassembly 210 which is configured for dispensing a fill material 212around blades 70 when they are positioned against alignment plate 202.As used herein, “fill material” may be used to refer to any material orcomposition which may be solidified to fix the position of blades 70. Inthis regard, for example, fill material 212 may be wax, a pottingmaterial, a photopolymer resin, or molten glass. Alternatively, fillmaterial 212 may be any other material that may be poured around blades70 which may become less viscous or more rigid to secure the position ofblades 70 when solidified.

Notably, according to exemplary embodiments, fill material 212 is afluid material which flows around blades 70 to fill in gaps an ensurecontact against all portions of blades 70, e.g., to provide firm supportwhen solidified. Therefore, according to exemplary embodiments, toolingassembly 200 may further include a plurality of walls 220 which surroundalignment plate 202 to define a reservoir 222. In this regard, fillassembly 210 may dispense fill material 212 directly into reservoir 222until the level of fill material 212 reaches a height is suitable tosupport blades 70 when the fill material 212 is solidified.

Notably, after fill material 212 has been poured into reservoir 222 suchthat it surrounds blades 70, fill material 212 must be solidified or itscomposition must be otherwise changed in order to rigidly couple and fixthe relative positions of blades 70. After fill material 212 issolidified, the solidified fill material 212 and the components fixedtherein (e.g., blades) are generally referred to as a fixed componentassembly 230. It should be appreciated that fixed component assembly 230may be removed from alignment plate 202 and walls 220 as a standalone,rigid structure having repair surfaces 72 of blades 70 positioned in asingle plane, e.g., build plane 82. In this manner, as will be describedbelow, fixed component assembly 230 may then be positioned at a knownlocation on build platform 118 of an additive manufacturing machine 100and an additive repair process may begin directly on the repair surface72 of each blade 70.

It should be appreciated that such a solidification process may varydepending on the type of fill material 212 used. For example, if fillmaterial 212 is liquid wax, tooling assembly 200 may be left at roomtemperature for an amount of time sufficient for the wax to solidify.Alternatively, tooling assembly 200 may be positioned in a refrigeratedenvironment or may otherwise be cooled, e.g., by attaching cooling coilsto walls 220 and the alignment plate 202. By contrast, if fill material212 is a photopolymer resin, a light source sufficient for curing thephotopolymer resin may be directed toward fill material 212 until it issolidified. It should further be appreciated that other fill materialsare possible, other methods of solidification may be used, and othervariations and modifications may be made to tooling assembly 200 whileremaining within the scope of the present subject matter.

In addition, although the illustrated embodiments shown in FIGS. 5through 8 illustrate three blades 70 which have been fixed and areformed into fixed component assembly 230 using tooling assembly 200, itshould be appreciated that tooling assembly 200 and the methodsdescribed herein may be used to prepare any other suitable number, type,position, and configuration of components according to alternativeembodiments. The exemplary embodiments described herein are not intendedto limit the scope of the present subject matter in any manner.

Referring now specifically to FIGS. 5 through 7, one exemplary use oftooling assembly 200 will be described according to an exemplaryembodiment of the present subject matter. According to this embodiment,blades 70 are mounted against the alignment plate 202 under the force ofgravity. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 5, blades 70 are mounted againstthe alignment plate 202 such that repair surfaces 72 are aligned againsta top surface 240 of alignment plate 202. In other words, repairsurfaces 72 face down along the vertical direction V toward alignmentplate 202. Blade 70 may then be held in position in any suitable mannerwhile walls 220 are positioned to surround alignment plate 202 anddefine reservoir 222.

After blades 70 are placed such that repair surfaces 72 are face down onalignment plate 202, fill assembly 210 may supply fill material 212 intoreservoir 222, e.g., through a nozzle 242. According to the illustratedembodiment shown in FIG. 6, fill material 212 is added until a top ofthe component is covered, e.g., until dovetail 244 of each blade 70 iscovered. However, it should be appreciated that according to alternativeembodiments, blades 70 need only be surrounded by fill material 212sufficiently to fix their relative position. Thus, the amount of fillmaterial 212 needed may depend, for example, on the rigidity of fillmaterial 212 when solidified, on the number and size of blades 70 infixed component assembly 230, and on the amount of handling which mightoccur to fixed component assembly 230 prior to the additive repairprocess.

Notably, after fixed component assembly 230 has solidified, it may bedesirable to remove a top layer or top portion 250 of fill material 212from fixed component assembly 230. In this regard, for example, fillmaterial 212 may contaminate repair surface 72 of each blade 70, maymelt during the additive printing process and contaminate melt pool 176,or may otherwise compromise the additive printing process. Therefore, asillustrated in FIG. 7, tooling assembly 200 may further include acleaning device 252 which is generally configured for removing the topportion 250 of fill material 212 from fixed component assembly 230. Forexample, cleaning device 252 may be a heat source 254 which passes alongtop portion 250 of fixed component assembly 230 after it is removed fromalignment plate 202. In this manner, heat source 254 may melt topportion 250 which may can flow away from blades 70 and off of fixedcomponent assembly 230. According to alternative embodiments, cleaningdevice 252 may include any other suitable material removal device, suchas a grinding wheel, sandpaper, or any other suitable machine or deviceconfigured for grinding, machining, brushing, etching, polishing, orotherwise substantively modifying a component, e.g., by subtractivemodification or material removal.

After fixed component assembly 230 is formed to position repair surfaces72 in build plane 82, and after top portion 250 of fill material 212 andfixed component assembly 230 is removed and repair surfaces 72 aresuitably prepped, fixed component assembly 230 may be positioned onbuild platform 118 of AM machine 100 in preparation for the additiverepair process. In this regard, recoater mechanism 114 may then deposita layer of additive powder 142 over fixed component assembly 230 and therepair surfaces 72 of each of the plurality of blades 70, as illustratedschematically in FIG. 7. In this manner, build layer 172 may bepositioned at the top of each repair surface 72 and have substantiallyeven thickness and the additive printing process may proceed by fusing aportion of build layer 172 onto repair surfaces 72 of each blade 70.

Referring now specifically to FIG. 8, an alternative method of formingfixed component assembly 230 will be described according to an exemplaryembodiment of the present subject matter. Notably, due to the similarityof components described with respect to FIGS. 5 through 7, likereference numerals may be used to refer to the same or similar elementsin FIG. 8. The primary difference between these two embodiments is thatthe previously discussed fixed component assembly 230 is formed withrepair surfaces 72 facing down on alignment plate 202, whereas the fixedcomponent assembly 230 described with respect to FIG. 8 is formed withrepair surfaces 72 facing up toward the bottom surface 260 of alignmentplate 202.

In order to ensure flush contact with repair surface 72 of each blade 70against bottom surface 260 of alignment plate 202, tooling assembly 200may further include one or more biasing members 262 which are configuredfor urging each of the blades 70 upward against the alignment plate 202.In this regard, biasing members 262 may be any suitable device ormechanism for exerting a biasing force on blades 70 upward along thevertical direction V. Biasing members 262 may be, for example, one ormore mechanical springs, magnet pairs (e.g., permanent magnets orelectromagnets), linear actuators, piezoelectric actuators, etc. Thebiasing force generated by biasing members 262 allows repair surfaces 72to seat flush against the alignment plate 202 such that they are alignedin the same build plane 82.

Notably, after the blades 70 are urged upward against the alignmentplate 202, fill assembly 210 may dispense fill material 212 intoreservoir 222 in the same manner as described above. However, it shouldbe appreciated that by mounting blades 70 with their repair surfaces 72facing up, the fill material 212 need only be filled to a level suitablefor forming a rigid fixed component assembly 230, but preferably doesnot cover repair surfaces 72 themselves. In this manner, potentialcontamination of repair surfaces 72 may be avoided and cleaning device252 may not be needed for removing top portion 250 of fill material 212from fixed component assembly 230.

Thus, tooling assembly 200 as described above is generally configuredfor forming a fixed component assembly 230 which includes a plurality ofcomponents, e.g., blades 70, surrounded by a solidified fill material212 which fixes repair surfaces 72 of each blade 70 in a singlehorizontal plane, e.g., the build plane 82. Notably, in addition tosecuring repair surfaces 72 and build plane 82 to facilitate improvedrecoating and printing operations, performing repair procedures withfixed component assembly 230 also requires much less additive powderwithin build chamber 134. In this regard, solidified fill material 212acts as a raised support surface for forming the powder bed, such thatthe process for supplying or loading additive powder 142 into powder bedis simplified. For example, an operator need only fill build chamber 134above fill material 212. In this manner, the time required to preparethe additive manufacturing machine 100 for the print process is reduced,as is the amount of additive powder 142 that must be used and therequired time for post processing of blades 70 and additive powder 142.

Now that the construction and configuration of additive repair system 50has been described according to exemplary embodiments of the presentsubject matter, an exemplary method 300 for mounting and aligning aplurality of components for a repair or rebuild process using anadditive repair system will be described according to an exemplaryembodiment of the present subject matter. Method 300 can be used torepair blades 70 using additive repair system 50, AM machine 100, andtooling assembly 200, or to repair any other suitable component usingany other suitable additive manufacturing machine or system. In thisregard, for example, controller 60 may be configured for implementingsome or all steps of method 300. Further, it should be appreciated thatthe exemplary method 300 is discussed herein only to describe exemplaryaspects of the present subject matter, and is not intended to belimiting.

Referring now to FIG. 9, method 300 includes, at step 310, positioningthe plurality of components such that a repair surface of each of theplurality of components contacts an alignment plate. In this regard,continuing the example from above, the plurality of blades 70 may beurged against the alignment plate 202 under the force of gravity (e.g.,as shown in FIGS. 5 through 7) or by a biasing member 262 (e.g., asshown in FIG. 8). In this manner the repair surface 72 of each blade 70is positioned in a desired build plane 82.

Method 300 further includes, at step 320, surrounding the alignmentplate with containment walls to define a reservoir, the plurality ofcomponents being positioned at least partially within the reservoir.Furthermore, step 330 includes dispensing a fill material into thereservoir, the fill material being configured for fixing the relativeposition of the plurality of components when the fill material issolidified. Step 340 may further include solidifying the fill materialto form a fixed component assembly comprising fill material and theplurality of components fixed therein. In this regard, for example, apotting material, liquid wax, a photopolymer resin, or molten glass maybe poured into reservoir 222 and solidified, e.g., by cooling to roomtemperature. After the fill material is solidified, fixed componentassembly 230 includes the plurality of components, e.g., blades 70,which are fixed in relative position and have their repair surfaces 72aligned for the additive printing process.

In the event fixed component assembly 230 was formed with the repairsurfaces 72 of blades 70 facing down, step 350 may further includeremoving a top layer of the fill material from the fixed componentassembly proximate the repair surface of each of the plurality ofcomponents. For example, heat source 254 may be used to melt wax, agrinding assembly may be used to remove potting material, etc. Afterfixed components assembly 230 has been prepped and repair surfaces 72are cleaned, fixed component assembly 230 may be positioned on a buildplatform 118 of an additive manufacturing machine 100 for printingprocess.

Thus, according to an exemplary embodiment, method 300 may furtherinclude additively printing repair segments 74 onto repair surfaces 72of each blade 70 using AM machine 100. In this regard, step 360 includesdepositing a layer of additive powder over the fixed component assemblyusing a powder dispensing assembly. Step 370 includes selectivelyirradiating the layer of additive powder to fuse the layer of additivepowder onto the repair surfaces of the components. In this manner, anenergy source may fuse additive powder onto each blade tip layer bylayer until the component is repaired to an original CAD model or toanother suitable geometry.

FIG. 9 depicts an exemplary control method having steps performed in aparticular order for purposes of illustration and discussion. Those ofordinary skill in the art, using the disclosures provided herein, willunderstand that the steps of any of the methods discussed herein can beadapted, rearranged, expanded, omitted, or modified in various wayswithout deviating from the scope of the present disclosure. Moreover,although aspects of the methods are explained using additive repairsystem 50, AM machine 100, and tooling assembly 200 as an example, itshould be appreciated that these methods may be applied to repairing orrebuilding any other number, type, and configuration of components usingany suitable tooling assembly or additive manufacturing machine orsystem.

This written description uses examples to disclose the invention,including the best mode, and also to enable any person skilled in theart to practice the invention, including making and using any devices orsystems and performing any incorporated methods. The patentable scope ofthe invention is defined by the claims, and may include other examplesthat occur to those skilled in the art. Such other examples are intendedto be within the scope of the claims if they include structural elementsthat do not differ from the literal language of the claims, or if theyinclude equivalent structural elements with insubstantial differencesfrom the literal languages of the claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of aligning a plurality of componentsfor a repair process, the method comprising: positioning the pluralityof components such that a repair surface of each of the plurality ofcomponents contacts an alignment plate; surrounding the alignment platewith containment walls to define a reservoir, the plurality ofcomponents being positioned at least partially within the reservoir; anddispensing a fill material into the reservoir, the fill material beingconfigured for fixing a relative position of the plurality of componentswhen the fill material is solidified.
 2. The method of claim 1, whereinpositioning the plurality of components comprises: positioning theplurality of components such that the repair face of each of theplurality of components is positioned face down on the alignment plate,the alignment plate at least partially defining the reservoir.
 3. Themethod of claim 2, further comprising: solidifying the fill material toform a fixed component assembly comprising the fill material and theplurality of components; and removing a top layer of the fill materialfrom the fixed component assembly proximate the repair surface of eachof the plurality of components.
 4. The method of claim 3, whereinremoving the top layer of the fill material comprises: melting the toplayer of fill material using a heat source.
 5. The method of claim 1,wherein positioning the plurality of components comprises, for each ofthe plurality of components: positioning the component such that therepair surface faces up toward a bottom surface of the alignment plate;and urging the component upward with a biasing member to ensure contactbetween the repair surface and the alignment plate.
 6. The method ofclaim 5, wherein the biasing member comprises one or more springs, oneor more magnet pairs, and/or one or more piezoelectric actuators.
 7. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the fill material is selected from a groupconsisting of a potting material, a wax, a photopolymer resin, or moltenglass.
 8. The method of claim 1, further comprising: solidifying thefill material to form a fixed component assembly comprising the fillmaterial and the plurality of components; and mounting the fixedcomponent assembly on a build platform, the build platform being movablealong a build direction.
 9. The method of claim 8, further comprising:depositing a layer of additive powder over the fixed component assemblyusing a powder dispensing assembly; and selectively irradiating thelayer of additive powder to fuse the layer of additive powder onto therepair surface of each of the plurality of components.
 10. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the plurality of components comprise at least oneairfoil of a gas turbine engine.
 11. The method of claim 1, wherein therepair surface is a blade tip of a high pressure compressor blade of agas turbine engine.
 12. A tooling assembly for fixing a relativeposition of a plurality of components, the tooling assembly comprising:an alignment plate for receiving the plurality of components such that arepair surface of each of the plurality of components contacts thealignment plate; a plurality of walls surrounding the alignment plate todefine a reservoir; and a fill assembly for dispensing a fill materialinto the reservoir, the fill material fixing a relative position of theplurality of components when solidified.
 13. The tooling assembly ofclaim 12, wherein the plurality of components are positioned such thatthe repair face of each of the plurality of components is face down onthe alignment plate.
 14. The tooling assembly of claim 12, wherein thefill material is solidified when the plurality of components arepositioned face down on the alignment plate to form a fixed componentassembly, the tooling assembly further comprising: a cleaning device forremoving a top layer of the fill material from the fixed componentassembly proximate the repair surface of each of the plurality ofcomponents.
 15. The tooling assembly of claim 14, wherein the cleaningdevice comprises: a heat source for melting the top layer of fillmaterial.
 16. The tooling assembly of claim 12, wherein the plurality ofcomponents are positioned such that the repair face of each of theplurality of components is face up toward a bottom surface of thealignment plate.
 17. The tooling assembly of claim 16, furthercomprising: one or more biasing members for urging each of the pluralityof components upward to ensure contact between the repair surface ofeach of the plurality of components and the alignment plate.
 18. Thetooling assembly of claim 17, wherein the one or more biasing memberscomprise one or more springs, one or more magnet pairs, and/or one ormore piezoelectric actuators.
 19. The tooling assembly of claim 16,wherein the fill material is selected from a group consisting of apotting material, a wax, a photopolymer resin, or molten glass.
 20. Thetooling assembly of claim 16, wherein the plurality of componentscomprise at least one airfoil of a gas turbine engine.